Learn English With Jokes • Bobby at the Football Match

Learn English With Jokes

Bobby at the Football Match

Intermediate · Past Perfect · Past Modal (should have)

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Survolez les mots en ambre pour voir les définitions en français.

By the timeD'ICI QUE / AU MOMENT OÙ Bobby arrived, the football game had alreadyDÉJÀ started. "Why are you so late?" asked his friend.

"I couldn't decide between going to church and coming to the football match. So I tossed a coinTIRER À PILE OU FACE / LANCER UNE PIÈCE," said Bobby.

"But that shouldn't haveCELA N'AURAIT PAS DÛ taken too long," said the friend.

"Well, I had to toss it 32 times."

📘 Key Vocabulary +

by the time

D'ICI QUE / AU MOMENT OÙ

already

DÉJÀ

tossed a coin

TIRER À PILE OU FACE / LANCER UNE PIÈCE

that shouldn't have

CELA N'AURAIT PAS DÛ

📖 Grammar Points +

1. Past perfect for an action completed before another past action
The joke uses past perfect in the first sentence: "the football game had already started". This shows that the game started BEFORE Bobby arrived. The past perfect (had + past participle) is used to make the sequence of events clear when two things happened in the past. Learners can see how English speakers use past perfect to avoid confusion: without it, "the game started" could mean it started at the same time he arrived. For French speakers, this is similar to the plus-que-parfait (le match avait déjà commencé).

2. Past modal "should have" for a past expectation that was not met
The friend says, "That shouldn't have taken too long." This is the past modal structure: should have + past participle. It expresses a past expectation or obligation that did NOT happen. The friend expected the coin toss to be quick, but in reality, it took a long time (32 tosses!). For French speakers, this is similar to cela n'aurait pas dû prendre trop de temps. Other past modals include: could have, would have, might have, must have.

🔁 Synonyms & Alternatives +

by the time · when / by the moment

D'ICI QUE → also "lorsque"

tossed a coin · flipped a coin / threw a coin

TIRER À PILE OU FACE → also "lancer une pièce"

Both fit the conversational tone: “when Bobby arrived” or “flipped a coin”.

💬 Mini Dialogue +

Context: Two colleagues, Thabo and Lerato, are at work. Thabo arrives very late to a morning meeting.

Lerato: "By the timeD'ICI QUE / AU MOMENT OÙ you arrived, the meeting had alreadyDÉJÀ finished."
Thabo: "Sorry. I couldn't decide between two routes to work. So I tossed a coinTIRER À PILE OU FACE / LANCER UNE PIÈCE."
Lerato: "But that shouldn't haveCELA N'AURAIT PAS DÛ taken more than a few seconds."
Thabo: "Well, I had to toss it 17 times. The coin kept landing on its edge."

Uses past perfect (“had finished”), past modal (“shouldn't have taken”), and vocabulary items integrated naturally.

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